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21 January 2014

Our Little Boy has a bit of a comedic personality - he loves to entertain and make people laugh. In today's story, he was only being open and honest, he wasn't really trying. Truthfully, those are often the funniest times, when he is just stating the obvious.

So, here's what happened. Little Boy recently turned three and it was suggested he have an eye exam. He's always the most excellent of patients, but this was new and he was a little timid. For some added confidence he wanted to sit on my lap while the doctor performed his exam. No problem, Mom to the rescue.

I was wearing a hoodie and had my phone in my hand when he asked that I sit with him. I absently stuffed my phone in the front pocket of my hoodie, sat in the exam chair and plopped him up on my lap. The phone was on vibrate so as to not disturb the doctor and nurses performing their jobs - good patient Mommy that I am.

Little Boy is obeying the doctor's every direction and chatting small talk with him when I receive a text message. A text message is a double vibrate since my phone is on silent.

I'm not thinking anything of it until Little Boy says very calmly "Mommy, you tooted." The doctor stops his exam and he and the nurse start giggling. I quickly try to reclaim my dignity by declaring "No! That was just my phone, honey." But it was hopeless - too funny for anyone to even consider acknowledging the truth...

I'm sure my face was a little flushed, but I was laughing too. Even better, when you don't acknowledge the text, two minutes later it will buzz again. I can say it was a very long two minutes until I felt as though I was out of the woods!

Children really are hilarious and seriously do say the darndest things. Their timing is always impeccable and no one within earshot is ever exempt. I love it. :)

And I can't help but include a shot from one of Little Boy's favorite movies.

19 January 2014

Spending this Sunday hanging with my Little Boy who has been hit with Flu A. Thankfully, he seems to have evaded some of the more worse symptoms. He has primarily been coughing and is now showing congestion, but his activity and appetite are fine. Hoping he's on the mend and my husband and I are spared. :)

Now time for a little Sunday Social with Ashley... By the way, I'm loving the new SS Button!

17 January 2014

Well hello, Friday! I'm so happy that you are here. And bonus, it's time to link up with the lovely ladies that host the fabulous blog hop, Five on Friday. :)

ONE

I'm always a little, okay a lot, behind in the movie world. This past weekend, the husband and I decided to be wild and crazy and stay up past 10:00 on Saturday night to watch a movie. I had heard lots of folks talking about The Hunger Games and most recently, Catching Fire, but I really wasn't familiar with it - I only knew that people loved it.

In the interest of not being able to agree on anything else, we decided to just pick something and go with it. I was a little confused in the beginning but picked up on it fairly quickly. It was surely disturbing, but you couldn't help but be completely enthralled. We watched it all the way through and both really liked it. Both of us also agreed that we couldn't get it out of our heads for a couple of days following.

As a matter of fact, I was so intrigued that I am now reading book one of the three book series. So far, it has clarified so much of what I was unsure of when watching the movie. I'm having a hard time putting it down and am certain I'll have to watch the movie again to do it proper justice.

TWO

Remember when I mentioned I was getting old ever since turning thirty? Well, this week I started physical therapy. Somewhere along the way I've developed tendinitis in the rotator cuff of my right shoulder. When the pain is at its worst, I can barely take my shirt off or put deodorant on. At its best, I barely notice it. The thing is, it flares up and then calms, flares up, then calms. Hopefully, with my strengthening and stretching exercises, I won't have to deal with that up and down cycle for much longer. I've also had to make a point to limit my lifting of our Little Boy. I have to face the fact that he's not exactly little anymore.

THREE

Does anyone else watch NCIS? It is my absolute favorite show. I'm just curious if anyone else likes Bishop as much as I do? I was so bummed when Ziva left the show. I thought there was no way they could replace her, the show would be doomed. But to my surprise, I think they managed to successfully infiltrate the newbie. I miss Ziva's character, but Bishop's character is so different from Ziva's that it's not like she replaced her, she's just new. Plus, she's nerdy. And what nerd isn't going to root for other nerds? :)

FOUR

I learned this week that there really is a difference in shampoos. I had been using Dove's volume boosting shampoo and loved it. However, when I went to pick up another bottle, the store didn't have it. So instead, in the interest of protecting the color that I have put on every eight weeks, I went with the color care. It was only about three days after use that I had to go back to the store. The color care shampoo was a creamy white and visibly weighed my hair down. I lost all body. I ended up going back to the store and picking out the Pantene volume shampoo. Seriously, one wash later, my body was back. Both the Dove and Pantene shampoos are a clear shampoo and neither weighed my hair down like the other did.

FIVE

Lesson of the week - the flu mist does not cover all strains of the flu, in particular, Flu A. Little Boy and I had to make a trip to the doctor. He had this chronic cough for a couple of days, no other signs like fever or congestion, but the cough was showing no signs of going away. I wasn't too concerned until one night he coughed so hard that he threw up in bed. :( I thought we better make sure it wasn't turning into something, and low and behold, he tested positive for Flu A. Even more fun is the price of Tamiflu. But, it will be totally worth it. Nobody likes to see their baby down for the count, and hopefully we've caught it early enough that he'll be spared of the worst.

Hope your weeks have been lovely and your weekends are fantastic and restful.

14 January 2014

It sounds like one of those classic fairy tales, doesn't it? Sadly, I'm really not that creative.

In the interest of being blunt, I'm not much of a cook. I know my way around the kitchen, I can follow recipes and instructions, but I do not venture out of my box very often, if ever. I have a small list of things I cook and that my family will actually eat, and we stick with that. We all claim we are not picky, but really we are.

Despite my limited cooking endeavors, one thing I have learned is to never turn down anything Pampered Chef. Everything Pampered Chef has an element of awesomeness and will always be worth it. If a friend recommends it, get yourself one. If you get something for Christmas, feel honored. Both of those things happened to me recently, and here are two recent blessings to my kitchen.

The Apple Wedger

By far one of the coolest things I have ever used. You simply place the wedger over the center of the apple's core and apply pressure down. Voila! Ten beautiful apple wedges. This is huge for me because I'll only eat apples if they are already cut. I'm not one to just grab one and start biting into it. Now, I have no excuse!

The Brownie Pan

Does anyone else make a pan of brownies only to eat the batter and waste the pan of baked brownies? Insert sheepish face here. I like for my brownies to be warm, soft, and a little crunchy on the edges. You really can't get much of that in a regular pan. And truthfully, I find it painful to slice warm brownies because it just makes a mess, and its an annoyance to cut room temperature ones because that requires work.

Who wouldn't love this amazing brownie pan? You get the batter and the brownie! Each perfectly portioned square is warm and soft on the inside and a crunchy on the edges. Bonus, there's no cutting. You use this perfect little brownie spatula to lift the brownie right out. Even better, 20 seconds in the microwave and it's like it was fresh out of the oven. I'm swooning, I know. However, I'm pretty sure my hips aren't.

12 January 2014

I am so excited to be guest hosting this week's Super Sunday Sync! And, I'm so thankful you've stopped by SK. :) Be sure to look around. You can always learn more about me here. Read about our most recent date night that involved shots and stitches. And, I have some seriously ambitious goals for 2014. Or if you're at all interested in doing a thirty day devotional, Wife After God, as a small group check out the book here. Be sure to leave a comment, and I'll stop by and say hi! :)

Happy Sunday to you!

Kate

Welcome to Super Sunday Sync #69!

Thank you for joining the Super Sunday Sync this week. We are so glad that you have stopped by! After you link up, be sure to enter to win a Guest Host space for next week :)

1) Link up a family-friendly post {or your homepage if it will always be decent} that you think is SUPER! Please do not link up another hop or giveaway.

2) Follow your hosts and Guest-Hosts {the first 5 links}, via Bloglovin and/or GFC. We also appreciate {and return} any Facebook Likes and Twitter Follows. Be sure to leave a comment telling us how you follow, we'll follow you back!

3) Visit the blog before you, and a few others {the more, the merrier} and follow them. We're all looking to have more followers, that's why we're hopping, right?

4) Grab a button and put it somewhere people will see. We'd love for this hop to continue to be a big success!

If you're interested being a Guest Host, please to reserve your weekend now!

11 January 2014

I'm a little late with my Five on Friday, but this week has been a busy one. It really sort of flew by and I am looking forward to a restful weekend. It's raining here and that makes for a perfect day to just sit around, watch TV, and relax.

ONE

In one of my recent posts, I talked about seriously wanting to grow in my walk with God - My 2014 Path to Contentment. I'm a little nerdy by heart, meaning that I enjoy new books, freshly sharpened pencils, and anything studious - I find such things motivational. I've been wanting a new Bible ever since we purchased one for my mother-in-law for Christmas, so why not use that as motivation to get into His Word more? I loved the one we found for her. So, one day last week, I went to the bookstore and purchased one for myself. It's a Women's Study Bible, KJV. And, I love it! :)

TWO

Along with that, Ellie from Cheers Y'all saw My 2014 Path to Contentment post and shared with me a thirty day devotional that she and several other bloggers are going through as a group - Wife After God: Drawing Closer to God & Your Husband by the Unveiled Wife. I so badly wanted to join with the group but I was already a few days behind and I didn't want to rush through it in an effort to play catch up. I ordered it on Amazon and cannot wait to start it. If you're interested in going through it with me, let me know.

THREE

Little Boy was under the weather for a couple of days this week. He only ran a midgrade fever, which I'm thankful for, but the fever would spike in the middle of the night. He awoke both nights around 3 and would need medicine to bring down the fever. He would be really restless until the medicine kicked in and then he would be wide awake. Both nights, he asked for a banana and once eaten, would go right back to sleep. I told my husband that we were having banana parties at 3 AM! It was funny to us. :)

FOUR

I was pulled over by a policeman on Thursday. I'm not one to get upset or angry when this happens. No, instead my heart drops into my stomach and I become anxious. I knew I wasn't speeding because I purposely watched my speed knowing he was in the pack behind me. When he came up to my window, he was really nice. He asked for my driver's license and then asked if I by chance had a decal I hadn't put on my license plate. I immediately felt relief and laughed. I said Yes! I do. I showed him that I had in fact paid my car taxes and he smiled and let me go. Shew!! Sadly, I still haven't updated the actual plate.

FIVE

I was introduced to something new this week, Tudor's Biscuit World. We recently got one in our town and had no idea how awesome they were. My friend and I picked up lunch there one day and I had the BLT and fries. It was so yummy! I'm excited to have something new to add to our list of possible lunch venues. :)

05 January 2014

Date nights are few and far between. We rarely take the opportunity to spend an evening out with just ourselves. With our hectic schedules, time as a family is sometimes a struggle. We've always agreed that if we go out, we take Little Boy with us. But honestly, most of the time, we just like to stay in. We really are homebodies - all of us. And we're totally okay with that.

On a rare occasion though, the husband and I will plan an evening out. Take Friday evening for example. Little Boy is going to spend the entire evening and night with his grandma and his aunt. We are planning to have a nice dinner and go see a movie. My biggest concern is deciding between The Wolf on Wall Street or The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

I start getting ready for my date night out. I put on a nice sweater, add a little smelly-good lotion, and apply a little make-up. I'm pretty much all ready, but my date is no where to be seen. I'm waiting patiently for him, but as time creeps by, the patience starts to run thin. Where is he at? Doesn't he know we need to get going? He's the one that said to be ready at five!

After waiting what seemed like forever, husband pulls in. My patience meter has ran empty and the first thing out of my mouth is where have you been?! His reply is calm. Boy does he have a story for me. I'm not sure where my senses came from at that moment, but I simply asked if everything was okay. And then he showed me his hand. Everything was not okay.

I was completely worthless and wasn't even about to play doctor with that. There really was no question as to where we would spend the first part of our evening. He needed stitches. And someone to push that fat back in!

After about two hours in urgent care, a numbing shot, a tetanus shot, and three stitches later, we sat down for dinner at a restaurant in town. At this point, we're both tired and want nothing more than to go home and go to bed, but it IS date night. So, we manage dinner and chuck the movie.

Truth is, I love it. Of course I hate that my husband hurt his hand and had to go through the pain of having it numbed, and that our evening was not at all how we envisioned it would be, but it was time spent together. Quality time. And I'm so thankful for that time. God really is so good, and I love how He brings about blessings in some of the most roundabout ways. :)

02 January 2014

Welcome to 2014 Lovelies! I am not usually one to make new year resolutions, but as I reflect over the past year, there are so many things I want to do better in the next one.

A Walk With God﻿

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I want to spend quality time with God every day. I want to truly develop my personal relationship with Him. I want to grow. I want to read His word, keep a mindset of prayer, and be faithful to His house. I know that I won't be able to do these things perfectly, but I want to have a reservoir of strength at all times to draw from when I fail, and I want to be sure that I keep going despite my failures.

A Balanced Life﻿

I need to find the right balance in life, not just with work and home but with every aspect. I often find myself more focused on one area at a time instead of spreading my focus. I want to learn how to find that right balance for me and maintain it. I know this is something that people struggle with daily, but I also know that putting God in the center is the first and most important step.

A Healthier Body﻿

I recently turned thirty, and am quickly learning I am not getting any younger. As someone who was always so active during my school years, being inactive for so many years after I think, escalates the getting old factor. Joints and muscles are starting to ache, and painfully. I'm also certain that my eating habits and weight do not have a positive effect on my health. I know that I cannot fully eliminate sweets and my addictive Coke, but I can make a concentrated effort to cut significantly back and minimize my fast food consumption.

A Better Woman﻿

I want to be a better wife and mother. I want to strive to be the Proverbs 31 woman that my family deserves. I take so much for granted. I often withdraw to my own personal bubble and forget to consider the real blessings in everyone and everything in my life. I need to remember to be a supportive wife and a cherishing mother. My little boy is growing up so incredibly fast, and I know I'm not appreciating the everyday moments that will soon be a thing of the past.

A Consistent Blogger﻿

And since this is a blog, you may be wondering if I have any grand plans for Seriously Kate this year. Honestly, I hadn't given it much thought until a little FTSF reminder arrived in my email suggesting we finish the sentence "My blogging goals for this year are..."

Basically, I'd like to minimize the blogging "spurts" and post more consistently. Although it may seem like it from time to time, I really haven't given up blogging altogether. I just go in spurts. I'm really the same way with books. I'll read several in a row and then I won't read for a couple of months. It's like I play hobby of the month instead of moderation in all the things I enjoy. I suppose it all goes back to balance, doesn't it?

I'd also like to spend more time reading others' blogs and developing the friendships I've made over the past year. I have a real connection with some of you and just like a friendship in the flesh, without a little time and effort they will fizzle, and that's not what I want.

As I read through what I've written, I realize I've got my work cut out for me in the year ahead. I want to revisit this post a year from now and know that I tried, and that when I failed I got back up again. I want to give myself reason to be content with who I am in 2014. And to do so will only be by God's grace. Lord, I pray you would help me to reflect YOU this year.